Israeli forces shoot, injure Palestinian woman in southern Gaza

Dec. 22, 2015 4:15 P.M. (Updated: Dec. 22, 2015 7:36 P.M.)

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces on Tuesday shot and wounded a Palestinian woman with live fire when she approached the border fence east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, local sources told Ma'an.

Medics said the woman had been working on agricultural fields when she was shot. She was evacuated by ambulance to Nasser Hospital.

An Israeli army spokesperson said the woman had "breached the buffer zone in the southern Gaza Strip near Khan Younis."

She said Israeli forces fired "warning shots into the air, calling on the suspect to halt," and when the woman "refused," they aimed at her and a hit was confirmed.

Some 20 Palestinians have been killed in the beleaguered Gaza Strip since a wave of unrest swept the occupied Palestinian territory at the beginning of October.

The majority in Gaza were killed during demonstrations at the border fence, while a 2-year-old girl and her pregnant mother were killed in an Israeli airstrike on their home in October.

The United Nations has condemned the Israeli army's "excessive use of force, and violations of the right to life and security of the person."